Eternal Patience
by Jersey Wolf
Summary: Essentially something that popped into my head after hearing the phrase "Death isn't the end of your life". Tom's patience is finally paying off. I'd say he deserves happiness occasionally. Semi-AU since it involves Sebs and such. R&R


AUTHOR'S NOTE: Something cute and happy because my stories are starting to depress me. This is the result of listening to All Dogs Go to Heaven and All Dogs Go to Heaven 2. It makes me want to write silly things. Look! It's Sebs again! Don't know who Sebs is? Check out my story "Over the Rainbow". You'll figure it out. Trust me. Everyone except Tom is my brain property, though...Sebs pretty much belongs to Faintly Falling. She just lets me borrow him. Thank you very much :)

Thomas paced back and forth, looking up periodically to stare at the impressive gates before returning his gaze to the ground and continuing to pace as if the gates were but a minor annoyance. Decades, it felt like millennia, of waiting had finally come to this. He'd been infinitely patient for all this time, and now with the moment so close at hand the man, or what had once been a man, found himself anxious and nervous. Impatient now of all times. Tom knew it was just the expectation of it all making the wait feel like forever, but it didn't make him feel any better.

What was taking so long? What was the hold up? He knew today was the day. He knew the hour, the very minute in fact. Had something gone wrong? A snafu causing there to be some kind of delay in the process? Was it going to be drawn out? Tom certainly hoped not. A prolonged death couldn't possibly be pleasant, and the thought made him cringe.

Maybe there had been a miscalculation. Maybe there had been a wrong turn somewhere along the way. Anything but the worst. What exactly could the worst be in this situation? Tom wasn't sure what it was, but he knew what it felt like. It felt like the heaviness that characterized his worries and the memory of nausea. Nausea was such a long ago feeling, but just the thought of it was enough to make Tom press his hands on his stomach to try and soothe the discomfort.

Tired of pacing, the man took a seat on the ground beside another guy who appeared to be waiting as well. There were others waiting there too, most looking agitated and irritable, but Tom hardly noticed them as he fixated his gaze upon the gate. He stuck a finger in his mouth and picked his teeth idly. He would have tapped his feet upon the ground had his feet not been sore.

"They're late…they should have been here by now. That doesn't make any sense. I looked. Could there have been an error? No, that's not possible. There's never been a mistake before-"

"Will you quit your yammerin'? We're all anxious you know, but we have the decency to not make such a fuss." Tom turned to the old man beside him, his face a mix of indignation and severe embarrassment. So, there were still rude people even at this point.

"Yeah, well…at least I'm acknowledging the issue instead of letting it go on being ignored," he replied softly though sharply. Anything was better than being ignored.

He leaned forward and rested his elbows on his knees, eyes half closed lazily. There really just wasn't any point in getting riled up by such things anymore, but it didn't make them any less irritating. He had to stay calm. For everyone's sake. That was rule number one. "I'm just expecting someone…I guess we all are, but…he's pretty much the only one I got now so…"

"Save me your speeches, kid," the man said flatly, not even looking like he had been paying attention to Tom in the first place. "Just sit and be a good boy and wait quietly like everyone else."

Tom growled under his breath, but bit his tongue and said no more. Today was supposed to be a good one, but it wasn't exactly setting itself up to be stellar. He had just about dozed off when he heard it. A horn, but not just any horn. He perked up immediately, eyes wide and staring. It was time! The gates had begun to open, and in no time, Tom was on his feet and heading for the massive structure.

"Finally…" he grumbled, but his expression remained one of painful eagerness. All he'd had and all he was ever going to have was time, but it was hardly worth it if all that time was used for was waiting. At last, it was time for a break from the waiting. It was time for a little reward, though Tom hated to call it that. This wasn't a reward exactly…hell, not really at all, but there really wasn't any other way to put it. It was a break. A break.

There was a more official looking woman with a book in her hand that Tom decided to set up camp behind. He was certain she had more reason to be there then he did, but at the same time he wanted a good place to stand when the moment truly arrived. The woman glanced back at Tom with a look of mild annoyance that seemed to melt away into understanding as she saw the eagerness on his face. She looked friendly, one of those folks with an almost permanent smile, and Tom was thankful for that especially after his minor confrontation.

"Uh…can I see that book?" he asked cautiously. True, the woman had seemed nice, but appearances had a way of being deceiving. One of the many things Tom had a lot of knowledge about.

"That all depends," the woman replied coolly, her tone at odds with the warmth she gave off. "Do you have a good reason for looking?" Tom tried to read her, but along with being the sort that looked friendly, she was also difficult to read, and the man hated that. He had always been fond of his ability to read people when he needed to, and right about now he really needed to. "Oh, dearie, I'm just playing with you. You can look," she continued, making a slightly guilty face as if she knew that Tom had not enjoyed her attempt at joking with him. Tom realized that he must have been pouting.

"Thank you," he replied curtly before taking the book that was being offered. He skimmed it quickly; the names were organized in alphabetical order by last name. Among the Fs he found what he was looking for, and he did his best to not look relieved. Even if he was happy, this still wasn't the way he'd imagined seeing his friend again. It really was a shame that possibly the happiest moment he was going to have in a long time was caused by another person's death. His happiness and the death of others appeared to be a theme he'd noticed. Not that he was particularly proud of this fact.

Tom directed his attention to the gate once more as a little group of people entered through the gates, most of them elderly people, and though it had been a fair amount of time, he knew that he wouldn't have been _that_ old. He handed the book back to the woman, and no longer had any problem with standing in front of her. People continued to arrive in waves, but as Tom would scan there faces not one of them was familiar. Well, all except for one person he could have sworn was an old teacher of his, but he really didn't count that one since he didn't say anything to the guy. He watched on as others had their hallmark moments. Kissing and hugging and such things that one usually only saw in movies or airports. People were checked off in the book, and as the list dwindled, so did Tom's spirits. Could there really have been something wrong?

And then…then it happened. Two waves came one right after another, and among the crowd of faces, some confused and others bemused and others quite frankly enraged, Tom spied the face he'd been looking for. Bewildered, yes, but familiar all the same. It was aged some, that was for sure, but Tom could only understand one thing. His friend was here.

"Sebs!" he called. The sound was short and almost bark-like with excitement. The man he'd been watching picked up his head looking even more in shock than before. "Sebs, you idiot. Over here!" He waved his arms with gusto, until Sebs did in fact look over at him, but he did not walk over. Tom believed he could have described Sebs' expression as "like he'd just seen a ghost".

Since it didn't look like his friend was going to move any time soon, Tom decided to come to him. Still, he kept his gait to a calm one as he reminded himself that this was a delicate situation. One's first taste of death was startling, and Tom making such a scene had probably not been of much help. "I uh…didn't mean to surprise you, Sebs…" he began, but he trailed off as his friend's expression did not change. He wanted to believe that he saw recognition, but he couldn't kid himself. All he saw was surprise. "You haven't forgotten me have you?" Tom felt his stomach drop down into his feet as he spoke. Forgotten. All this waiting to be forgotten. It made him feel nauseous again. _Forgotten in life and forgotten in death_…a fate worse than death? In Tom's eyes it was.

However, Sebs shook his head, but not once did his eyes leave Tom, and it made Tom feel uncomfortable, and it showed in his smile, the ends of which twitched as he forced it to remain on his face "That's good…Sebs. Jeez, you had me worried. I was starting to think you'd never die...I mean...not that I WANTED you to die or anything…I've just been waiting and waiting. I can only do so much waiting you know. I guess…I just wanted some kind of closure. God, that sounds terrible." Tom looked down at his feet and up at Sebs as he spoke as if continually checking the water to make sure it was safe.

"I've been watching you…I know that's creepy, but umm…it was nice to see you and now you're here, for real this time. So, I'm kind of glad you died, but ummm…I wish you didn't have to die." Tom tripped over his words as Sebs stared at him wordlessly, silently judging him even if he wasn't trying to. He couldn't stop now though. He had momentum, and as clumsy as awkward as it was coming out what was being said had to be said, and what he was going to say next was the most important part of all so he looked Sebs in the eyes as he continued. "I just mean...I missed you..."

Sebs face remained unchanged, and once more the worry of being forgotten entered Tom's thoughts even though Sebs had assured him otherwise. _He could be lying._ Soon, Sebs opened his mouth slightly; the beginnings of words stuck in the back of his throat as he slowly mouthed something that Tom couldn't pick up on.

"Huh?"

Clearing his throat, out of necessity or for show Tom couldn't be sure, Sebs opened his mouth once more. "I…missed you too," he finally got out, looking almost exhausted by the effort. His bewilderment had lifted, and was replaced with an awkward urgency as he fidgeted for moment or two. Tom was about to say more when out of the blue he felt arms around him, squeezing him and holding him in place as if he had plans of leaving. He didn't. "I missed you a whole, fucking, lot you stupid bastard." Tom just stood there looking half-stunned as his friend clung to him. Sebs had never done such a things before, and even in the world of the dead where everything could happen, Tom had never dreamed up something like this. He couldn't take it anymore, and he returned the gesture. Embracing his friend like it was the last thing he was ever going to do.

"I guess you're happy to see me," he grinned even though he felt like his lungs were being compressed.

"You had better believe I missed you. Christ…Tom…I'm not dreaming am I? Because if I'm dreaming…"

"Aw, come off it, Sebs," Tom retorted. "At this point there really is no need to ask anymore. Just trust me on this one."

Sebs nodded, but still did not let go. "Just don't ever disappear on me again, ok?"

"I promise," Tom replied. "I've had enough waiting for ten lifetimes."


End file.
